Gaming device having an accumulated award selection bonus scheme

ABSTRACT

A gaming device including a game having a plurality of matingly interconnected indicators which are in the form of puzzle pieces that form a puzzle, and a plurality of masked selections associated with the puzzle pieces. The gaming device enables a player picks the selections to reveal one or more of the puzzle pieces in the puzzle. In one embodiment, the gaming device provides an award for each puzzle piece revealed in the puzzle. The player continues to pick selections until the player obtains a designated combination or section of puzzle pieces. After completing the designated combination, the gaming device provides the player with any awards associated with the puzzle pieces in the designated combination. In one embodiment, the gaming device also provides the player with the awards associated with any matingly interconnected puzzle pieces previously selected by the player.

PRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of and claims thebenefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/963,721, filed Sep. 26,2001, which incorporated herein by reference.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application is related to the following commonly-ownedco-pending patent applications: “GAMING DEVICE HAVING A BONUS SCHEMEWITH MULTIPLE SELECTION GROUPS,” Ser. No. 09/656,702, Attorney DocketNo. 0112300-008, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,439,995; “GAMING DEVICE WITH BONUSSCHEME HAVING MULTIPLE AWARD LEVELS,” Ser. No. 09/602,140, AttorneyDocket No. 0112300-023; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING BONUS SCHEME WITHINCREMENTAL VALUE DISCLOSURE,” Ser. No. 09/627,198, Attorney Docket No.0112300-022, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE WITH BONUS SCHEME PROVIDINGINCREASED REWARD FOR SELECTING RELATED SYMBOLS,” Ser. No. 09/605,023,Attorney Docket No. 0112300-025, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING AMULTIPLE SELECTION GROUP BONUS ROUND,” Ser. No. 09/605,107, AttorneyDocket No. 0112300-031, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,511,375,; “GAMING DEVICEHAVING APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING AN AWARD THROUGH AWARDELIMINATION OR REPLACEMENT,” Ser. No. 09/686,283, Attorney Docket0112300-139, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,413,161; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING RELATEDMULTI-GAME BONUS SCHEME,” Ser. No. 09/688,972, Attorney Docket No.0112300-158, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE INCLUDING AWARDS THAT GENERATEANOTHER AWARD,” Ser. No. 09/605,107, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-455,now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING A RE-TRIGGERING SYMBOLS BONUSSCHEME,” Ser. No. 09/981,133, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-466, nowpending; “GAMING DEVICE WITH A BONUS SCHEME HAVING REPEATED SELECTION OFVALUE SETS WITH OPTION TO SAVE VALUES,” Ser. No. 09/684,533, AttorneyDocket No. 0112300-469, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,464,582; “GAMING DEVICEHAVING A BONUS SCHEME INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF SELECTION GROUPS WITHWIN-GROUP OUTCOMES,” Ser. No. 09/981,084, Attorney Docket No.0112300-473, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING DUAL EVALUATION SCHEME,”Ser. No. 09/687,689, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-474, now pending;“GAMING DEVICE HAVING AN ELEMENT AND ELEMENT GROUP SELECTION ANDELIMINATION BONUS SCHEME,” Ser. No. 09/689,381, Attorney Docket No.0112300-478, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING ACHIEVEMENT CRITERIA FORADVANCEMENT,” Ser. No. 09/960,784, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-485, nowpending; “APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MODIFYING GENERATED VALUES TODETERMINE AN AWARD IN A GAMING DEVICE,” Ser. No. 09/957,018, AttorneyDocket No. 0112300-581, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING AN AWARDDISTRIBUTOR AND AN AWARD ACCUMULATOR BONUS GAME,” Ser. No. 09/682,369,Attorney Docket No. 0112300-766, now pending; “GAMING DEVICE HAVING ARE-TRIGGERING SYMBOL BONUS SCHEME WITH A BONUS SYMBOL ACCUMULATOR,” Ser.No. 10/071,441, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-964, now pending; “GAMINGDEVICE HAVING AN INDICATOR SELECTION WITH PROBABILITY-BASED OUTCOME,”Ser. No. 09/990,693, Attorney Docket No. 0112300-965, now pending; and“GAMING DEVICE WITH SIGNIFIED SYMBOLS,” Ser. No. 09/990,484, AttorneyDocket No. 0112300-966, now pending.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

[0003] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains ormay contain material which is subject to copyright protection. Thecopyright owner has no objection to the photocopy reproduction by anyoneof the patent document or the patent disclosure in exactly the form itappears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, butotherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

DESCRIPTION

[0004] The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, andmore particularly to a gaming device having an accumulated awardselection bonus scheme wherein the accumulated award includes aplurality of other awards.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0005] Gaming device manufacturers constantly strive to make gamingdevices that provide as much enjoyment and excitement to players aspossible. Gaming devices such as slot machines, having primary andsecondary or bonus games or schemes are well known. Providing a bonusgame in which a player has an opportunity to win potentially largeawards or credits in addition to the awards associated with the base orprimary game of the gaming device is one way to enhance player enjoymentand excitement.

[0006] Gaming devices having bonus games generally employ a triggeringevent that occurs during play of the base game. The triggering eventtemporarily stalls or halts the base game play and enables a player toenter a second, different game, which is the bonus game. The playerplays the bonus game, likely receives an award, and returns to the basegame. In most instances, the bonus game is relatively short in relationto the time that the player spends repeatedly playing the base game.

[0007] Known gaming machines have bonus schemes in which the player hasone or more opportunities to choose a particular selection or symbolfrom a group of symbols. When a player chooses a symbol, the game willeither award the player a bonus value or terminate the bonus round. Theoutcome, thus, depends upon the particular symbol selected by theplayer. In such games, when the player selects a symbol that awards abonus value (hereinafter referred to as “award indicator”), the playerreceives the value, and the player has another chance to select anothersymbol. Each time the player selects an award indicator, the gameprompts the player to make another selection. The bonus game continuesand the player may choose another symbol. The player then selectsanother symbol, and this process continues until the player selects asymbol which terminates the bonus game (hereinafter referred to as a“terminator”). When the player selects a terminator, typically the gameends and the player collects any bonus values that the playeraccumulated in that bonus round. In this type of game, the potentialamount of the award is limited by the terminators.

[0008] While such bonus schemes offer advantages in player appeal andexcitement, there is a continuing need to develop new types of bonusgames that allow players to accumulate larger awards and increase thelevel of player excitement and enjoyment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, andmore particularly to a gaming device having an accumulated awardselection bonus scheme. The game displays a plurality of selections tothe player. In one embodiment, an award or an accumulated award isassociated with each selection. The game provides the player with anumber of picks of the selections. If the player picks a selection thathas an associated award, the player receives that associated award. Ifthe player picks a selection that has an accumulated award, the playerreceives an accumulated award based on a plurality of selections relatedto or associated with the accumulated award selection. In oneembodiment, the accumulated award includes the awards that areassociated with the selections that are directly adjacent to theaccumulated award selection. The player continues to pick selectionsuntil the player has no remaining picks. In one alternative embodiment,the game includes one or more terminators associated with theselections. In this embodiment, the player picks selections until thereare no picks remaining or until the player selects a selection having aterminator associated with the selections. In one embodiment, theselections are arranged in a grid wherein the accumulated award includesthe awards associated with the selections in the grid which are adjacentto the accumulated award selections.

[0010] In a further embodiment, the game displays a plurality ofsequential selection sets to a player. The selection sets includeawards, accumulated awards, transformers, promoters and terminators. Asindicated above, an accumulated award provides several awards to theplayer where the awards are a combination of awards from associatedselections. As indicated above, a terminator ends the game. Atransformer changes or transforms a terminator into an accumulatedaward. If a player picks the transformer selection, the player keeps orbanks the transformer until a terminator is picked. When a terminator ispicked, the transformer changes the terminator into an accumulatedaward. A promoter enables a player to skip a selection set and makeanother pick from the plurality of selections in the next or asubsequent selection set. The player's goal is to obtain as many awardsas possible before picking a selection having an associated terminator.

[0011] In an alternative embodiment, the present invention relates ingeneral to a gaming device having a game such a secondary or bonus game,and more particularly to a gaming device having a game including aplurality of matingly connected indicators and a plurality of selectionsincluding those indicators. In one alternative embodiment, theindicators are matingly connected puzzle pieces which form a puzzle.Initially, the indicators associated with the selections are masked orhidden to the player. The player picks the selections and the gamingdevice reveals one or more indicators such as one or more puzzle piecescorresponding to an indicator such as a puzzle piece in the indicatorgroup such as the puzzle. Once a puzzle piece is revealed, thecorresponding puzzle piece is revealed along with any awards associatedwith that puzzle piece. The player continues to pick selections untilthe player obtains a designated combination or section of puzzle pieces.After completing the combination, the player receives any awardsassociated with the puzzle pieces in the combination. In one embodiment,the player also receives the awards associated with the matinglyconnected puzzle pieces which were previously selected by the player.

[0012] More specifically, in one embodiment, several puzzle pieces andselections are displayed to a player. The puzzle pieces each include atleast one award such as values, credits, multipliers, free picks, freespins, free games, game elements or any other desired values. Apredetermined or designated combination of puzzle pieces is required tocomplete the game. The combinations may be rows, columns, or any othersuitable section of the puzzle. The player picks selections attemptingto obtain desirable combinations of the puzzle pieces (i.e.,combinations of puzzle pieces resulting in larger awards) and avoidobtaining undesirable combinations (i.e., combinations of puzzle piecesresulting in smaller awards). After each pick, a puzzle piece isrevealed in the puzzle. Furthermore, an award associated with thatpuzzle piece is displayed to the player. The player continues to pickselections until they obtain a designated combination or section of thepuzzle piece. Once the player obtains a designated combination orsection of the puzzle piece, the game ends. In one embodiment, theplayer is awarded the total value of the matingly connected puzzlepieces in the completely designated combination.

[0013] In another alternative embodiment of the present invention, theplayer receives additional awards for obtaining a designatedcombination. Once the player obtains a combination, the player isawarded the total value of the awards associated with the picked puzzlepieces in that combination. In addition, the player receives the totalvalue of any awards associated with any puzzle pieces that are matinglyconnected to the completed combination. Thus, in this embodiment, theplayer is not only limited to the awards associated with the designatedcombination. The player also receives the awards associated with anymatingly connected pieces to that designated combination that werepicked by the player.

[0014] In another embodiment, the indicator display or puzzle includesat least one puzzle piece which is repeated two or more times in thepuzzle. In other words, the puzzle pieces in the puzzle include apredefined or predetermined relationship. In one aspect of thisembodiment, the puzzle includes two or more identical puzzle pieces. Inthis embodiment a single selection may reveal one puzzle piece or aplurality of puzzle pieces in the puzzle. This adds excitement andenjoyment for the player because the player may pick selection whichreveals several puzzle pieces in the puzzles and thereby provides theplayer with multiple awards for a single selection. It should beappreciated that one puzzle piece or a plurality of puzzle pieces may berepeated in a puzzle.

[0015] In a further embodiment, a selection in the selection display mayinclude two or more puzzle pieces in a puzzle. In this embodiment, thepuzzle pieces associated with the selection may be the same or identicalpuzzle pieces or different puzzle pieces. In this embodiment, the playerobtains a plurality of puzzle pieces for a single pick of the selectionsin the selection display. As described above, this also adds excitementand enjoyment for the player in a game.

[0016] In another alternative embodiment, certain sections of the puzzleare associated with awards. In one aspect of this embodiment, at leastone of the rows of interconnected puzzle pieces are associated with arow award and at least one of the columns including interconnectedpuzzle pieces in the puzzle are associated with a column award. Inanother embodiment, each of the rows is associated with a row award andeach of the columns is associated with a column award. The player picksselections to reveal puzzle pieces until all of the puzzle piecesassociated with a designated section such as a row or a column arerevealed or obtained by the player. The player receives all of theawards associated with the puzzle pieces which form the designated rowor column. In addition, the player receives the row award or columnaward associated with the completed designated section. In oneembodiment, the row award or column award received by the player isadded to the awards associated with the puzzle pieces which form thecompleted designated row or column. In another embodiment, the row orcolumn award is used to modify such as multiply the accumulated awardsfrom the puzzle pieces which form the completed designated row orcolumn. It should be appreciated that the row or column award may be anysuitable award and may modify the accumulated awards associated with thepuzzle pieces that form the completed designated section in any suitablemanner.

[0017] In a further alternative embodiment, the puzzle initiallydisplayed to the player at the beginning of a game includes puzzlepieces having awards which are visible or viewable by the player. Thus,the player can see or view the awards associated with the each of thepuzzle pieces in the puzzle before the player obtains any of the puzzlepieces. The player then can root for or particular puzzle pieces in thepuzzle in order to obtain a large award or a relatively large award inthe game. This adds further excitement and enjoyment for the player in agame.

[0018] Although the present invention is discussed relative to a bonusgame of a gaming machine, it should be appreciated that the presentinvention could be employed as a primary game in a gaming device.

[0019] It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to providea gaming device with an accumulated award selection bonus game.

[0020] A further advantage of the present invention is to provide abonus game that enables players to accumulate larger awards from asingle selection.

[0021] It is another advantage of the present invention to provide aselectable combination bonus game that enables players to pickselections to obtain one of several interconnected combinations.

[0022] It is a further advantage of the present invention to provide abonus game that enables players to receive awards for obtaininginterconnected combinations.

[0023] It is another advantage of the present invention to provide abonus game that enables players to receive larger awards.

[0024] Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will beapparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer tolike parts, elements, components, steps and processes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025]FIG. 1A is front plan view of one embodiment of the gaming deviceof the present invention.

[0026]FIG. 1B is front plan view of another embodiment of the gamingdevice of the present invention.

[0027]FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of the electronicconfiguration of one embodiment of the gaming device of the presentinvention.

[0028]FIG. 3 is an enlarged front elevation view of a display devicedisplaying a plurality of selections of one embodiment of the presentinvention.

[0029]FIG. 4A is an enlarged front elevation view of the plurality ofselections displayed at the start of a game.

[0030]FIG. 4B is an enlarged front elevation view of the display deviceillustrating a first pick by a player.

[0031]FIG. 4C is an enlarged front elevation view of the display deviceillustrating a second pick by a player that includes an accumulatedaward.

[0032]FIG. 4D is an enlarged front elevation view of the display deviceillustrating a third pick by a player that includes multiple accumulatedawards.

[0033]FIG. 4E is an enlarged front elevation view of the display deviceillustrating a fourth pick by a player.

[0034]FIG. 4F is an enlarged front elevation view of the display deviceillustrating a fifth and final pick by a player.

[0035]FIG. 5 is an enlarged front elevation view of an alternativeembodiment of the present invention wherein the display deviceillustrates a pick by a player that accumulates awards from a row ofselections.

[0036]FIG. 6 is an enlarged front elevation view of a furtheralternative embodiment of the present invention wherein the displaydevice illustrates a pick by a player that accumulates awards from apredefined area of selections.

[0037]FIG. 7 is an enlarged front elevation view of another alternativeembodiment of the present invention wherein the display deviceillustrates a plurality of selection sets having accumulated awards.

[0038]FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E and 8F are enlarged front elevation viewsof a display device illustrating an example game of the alternativeembodiment of FIG. 7 having a plurality of selection sets withaccumulated awards.

[0039]FIG. 9 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating an alternative embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0040]FIG. 10 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating an example of the embodiment ofFIG. 9 where a player makes a first pick in the game.

[0041]FIG. 11 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating a second pick by the player.

[0042]FIG. 12 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating a third pick by the player.

[0043]FIG. 13 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating a fourth pick by the player.

[0044]FIG. 14 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating a fifth pick by the player.

[0045]FIG. 15 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating a sixth and final pick by theplayer.

[0046]FIG. 16 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating another alternative embodimentof the present invention where the display device includes a pluralityof identical puzzle pieces.

[0047]FIGS. 17A, 17B and 17C are enlarged front elevation views of oneof the display devices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating an example of agame where a player only needs one puzzle piece to complete the game.

[0048]FIG. 18 is an enlarged front elevation view of one of the displaydevices of FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrating an alternative embodiment of thepresent invention where a plurality of row awards and a plurality ofcolumn awards are associated with the puzzle pieces.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Gaming Device and Electronics

[0049] Referring now to the drawings, two embodiments of the gamingdevice of the present invention are illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B asgaming device 10 a and gaming device 10 b, respectively. Gaming device10 a and/or gaming device 10 b are generally referred to herein asgaming device 10. Gaming device 10 is preferably a slot machine havingthe controls, displays and features of a conventional slot machine. Itis constructed so that a player can operate it while standing orsitting, and gaming device 10 is preferably mounted on a console.However, it should be appreciated that gaming device 10 can beconstructed as a pub-style table-top game (not shown) which a player canoperate preferably while sitting. Furthermore, gaming device 10 can beconstructed with varying cabinet and display designs, as illustrated bythe designs shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Gaming device 10 can also beimplemented as a program code stored in a detachable cartridge foroperating a hand-held video game device. Also, gaming device 10 can beimplemented as a program code stored on a disk or other memory devicewhich a player can use in a desktop or laptop personal computer or othercomputerized platform.

[0050] Gaming device 10 can incorporate any primary game such as slot,poker or keno, any of their bonus triggering events and any of the bonusround games. The symbols and indicia used on and in gaming device 10 maybe in mechanical, electrical or video form.

[0051] As illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B, gaming device 10 includes acoin slot 12 and bill acceptor 14 where the player inserts money, coinsor tokens. The player can place coins in the coin slot 12 or paper moneyor ticket vouchers in the bill acceptor 14. Other devices could be usedfor accepting payment such as readers or validators for credit cards ordebit cards. When a player inserts money in gaming device 10, a numberof credits corresponding to the amount deposited is shown in a creditdisplay 16. After depositing the appropriate amount of money, a playercan begin the game by pulling arm 18 or pushing play button 20. Playbutton 20 can be any play activator used by the player who starts anygame or sequence of events in the gaming device.

[0052] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, gaming device 10 also includes a betdisplay 22 and a bet one button 24. The player places a bet by pushingthe bet one button 24. The player can increase the bet by one crediteach time the player pushes the bet one button 24. When the playerpushes the bet one button 24, the number of credits shown in the creditdisplay 16 decreases by one, and the number of credits shown in the betdisplay 22 increases by one.

[0053] At any time during the game, a player may “cash out” and therebyreceive a number of coins corresponding to the number of remainingcredits by pushing a cash out button 26. When the player “cashes out,”the player receives the coins in a coin payout tray 28. The gamingdevice 10 may employ other payout mechanisms such as credit slipsredeemable by a cashier or electronically recordable cards which keeptrack of the player's credits.

[0054] Gaming device 10 also includes one or more display devices. Theembodiment shown in FIG. 1A includes a central display device 30, andthe alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 1B includes a central displaydevice 30 as well as an upper display device 32. Gaming device 10preferably displays a plurality of reels 34, preferably three to fivereels 34 in mechanical or video form at one or more of the displaydevices. However, it should be appreciated that the display devices candisplay any visual representation or exhibition, including but notlimited to movement of physical objects such as mechanical reels andwheels, dynamic lighting and video images. A display device can be anyviewing surface such as glass, a video monitor or screen, a liquidcrystal display or any other display mechanism. If the reels 34 are invideo form, the display device for the video reels 34 is preferably avideo monitor.

[0055] Each reel 34 displays a plurality of indicia such as bells,hearts, fruits, numbers, letters, bars or other images which preferablycorrespond to a theme associated with the gaming device 10. Furthermore,gaming device 10 preferably includes speakers 36 for making sounds orplaying music.

[0056] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the general electronic configuration ofgaming device 10 preferably includes: a processor 38; a memory device 40for storing program code or other data; a central display device 30; anupper display device 32; a sound card 42; a plurality of speakers 36;and one or more input devices 44. The processor 38 is preferably amicroprocessor or microcontroller-based platform which is capable ofdisplaying images, symbols and other indicia such as images of people,characters, places, things and faces of cards. The memory device 40 caninclude random access memory (RAM) 46 for storing event data or otherdata generated or used during a particular game. The memory device 40can also include read only memory (ROM) 48 for storing program codewhich controls the gaming device 10 so that it plays a particular gamein accordance with applicable game rules and pay tables.

[0057] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the player preferably uses the inputdevices 44, such as pull arm 18, play button 20, the bet one button 24and the cash out button 26 to input signals into gaming device 10. Incertain instances it is preferable to use a touch screen 50 and anassociated touch screen controller 52 instead of a conventional videomonitor display device. Touch screen 50 and touch screen controller 52are connected to a video controller 54 and processor 38. A player canmake decisions and input signals into the gaming device 10 by touchingtouch screen 50 at the appropriate places. As further illustrated inFIG. 2, the processor 38 can be connected to coin slot 12 or billacceptor 14. The processor 38 can be programmed to require a player todeposit a certain amount of money in order to start the game.

[0058] It should be appreciated that although a processor 38 and memorydevice 40 are preferable implementations of the present invention, thepresent invention can also be implemented using one or moreapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASIC's) or other hard-wireddevices, or using mechanical devices (collectively referred to herein asa “processor”). Furthermore, although the processor 38 and memory device40 preferably reside on each gaming device 10 unit, it is possible toprovide some or all of their functions at a central location such as anetwork server for communication to a playing station such as over alocal area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), Internet connection,microwave link, and the like. The processor 38 and memory device 40 isgenerally referred to herein as the “computer” or “controller.”

[0059] With reference to FIGS. 1A, 1B and 2, to operate the gamingdevice 10 in one embodiment the player must insert the appropriateamount of money or tokens at coin slot 12 or bill acceptor 14 and thenpull the arm 18 or push the play button 20. The reels 34 will then beginto spin. Eventually, the reels 34 will come to a stop. As long as theplayer has credits remaining, the player can spin the reels 34 again.Depending upon where the reels 34 stop, the player may or may not winadditional credits.

[0060] In addition to winning credits in this manner, preferably gamingdevice 10 also gives players the opportunity to win credits in a bonusround. This type of gaming device 10 will include a program which willautomatically begin a bonus round when the player has achieved aqualifying condition in the game. This qualifying condition can be aparticular arrangement of indicia on a display device. The gaming device10 preferably uses a video-based central display device 30 to enable theplayer to play the bonus round. Preferably, the qualifying condition isa predetermined combination of indicia appearing on a plurality of reels34. As illustrated in the five reel slot game shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B,the qualifying condition could be the number seven appearing on threeadjacent reels 34 along a payline 56. It should be appreciated that thepresent invention can include one or more paylines, such as payline 56,wherein the paylines can be horizontal, diagonal or any combinationthereof.

Bonus Game

[0061] Referring now to FIG. 3, one embodiment of the present inventionis shown containing the elements of the present invention. The gamingdevice displays a plurality of masked selections 102 to a player. In oneembodiment, the selections are arranged in an M by N matrix, where Mequals the number of rows and N equals the number of columns in thematrix. Furthermore, M and N are integers having a value of one orgreater. However, it should be appreciated that the plurality ofselections may be configured into any shape or design as desired. Eachselection 102 includes either an associated award 104 (shown in phantom)or an associated accumulated award 106 (shown in phantom). The award 104may be designated by a number or any other symbol as desired. Similarly,the accumulated award may be designated by a symbol, number, color orany other designation as desired. The player begins the game by pickingone of the masked selections 102. Once a masked selection is picked, theselection reveals an award 104 or an accumulated award 106 to theplayer. The selection remains highlighted and visible throughout thegame.

[0062] The gaming device includes a selector (such as a touch screen orelectro-mechanical device as indicated above) which is connected to orin communication with the processor which enables the player to selectthe selections.

[0063] If the player picks an award 104, they receive the value of theaward. In one embodiment, the award is designated by a number such as anumber of credits as shown in FIG. 3. However, it should be appreciatedthat the award may be a symbol, picture, sound or other designation thatis linked to an award value or other prize. Once picked, the award valueis transferred to an award display 110. The award display 110 indicatesthe accumulated value of all awards obtained by a player in a game.

[0064] The player may pick a selection that reveals an accumulated award106. The accumulated award turns a single player selection into a largeraward than associated with the selection picked by the player. When aplayer picks a selection that reveals an accumulated award in oneembodiment, the player receives the award values for all of theselections that are adjacent to the selection having the accumulatedaward. In some circumstances, as in FIG. 3, an accumulated award is notcompletely surrounded by selections. In this situation, the playerreceives the award values for the selections that are adjacent to theselection having the accumulated award. The player does not receiveawards for adjacent positions that do not include selections 102. Thusin FIG. 3, the player would receive the accumulated awards from theselections directly on the left, right, top of and diagonal to theselection having the accumulated award 106 because the accumulated awardis located along an edge of the matrix.

[0065] The accumulated award may be designated by any symbol, number,sound or character as desired by the game implementor. Preferably, theaccumulated award is designated by a symbol or shape that correspondswith the theme of the game. Also, it should be appreciated that theaccumulated award may include other values besides the award values ofthe adjacent selections. The accumulated award may be an awardassociated with the selection having the accumulated award, and may alsoinclude the awards from the selections that are in the same row orcolumn as the selection having the accumulated award in the embodimentwhere the selections are in a column and row format. The accumulatedaward may also include any defined grouping of selections as desired bythe implementor. For example, the accumulated award may include theawards from selections that are diagonal to the accumulated award, oronly the selections that are below the accumulated award, if any. Anaccumulated award may also include another accumulated award, triggeredby the first accumulated award.

[0066] The pick display 108 indicates how many picks are remaining in agame. Because the player starts a game with a limited number of picks,the player will continue to pick selections until there are no picksremaining in the game as displayed by pick display 108. When pickdisplay 108 equals zero, the game ends. The player's goal is toaccumulate as many awards as possible before running out of picks. In analternative embodiment, a terminator is also associated with the one ormore of the selections having the accumulated awards. When a selectionhaving an accumulated award and a terminator is selected, theaccumulated award is provided to the player and the game ends. One ormore anti-terminators which are accumulated by the processor may beemployed to nullify the effect of a terminator associated with one ofthe selections.

[0067] Now referring to FIGS. 4A through 4F, an example game of oneembodiment of the present invention is illustrated. In the beginning ofthe bonus game shown in FIG. 4A, a plurality of masked selections 102are displayed to the player on the display device 30 or 32 (see FIGS. 1Aand 1B). In this example, the selections 102 are arranged in a M by Nmatrix where M and N both equal six. However, it should be appreciatedthat M and N do not have to be equal and both M and N are integershaving values of one or greater. Each masked selection 102 includes anaward or an accumulated award.

[0068] The player starts the game with five picks as shown in pickdisplay 108. Thus, the player will pick five selections in the game. Itshould be appreciated that an award may include additional picks,opportunities, or other awards that extend the game. The pick display108 will include any additional picks that the player receives duringthe game. The player picks selections until all of their original andadditional picks are gone.

[0069] The player initially does not have any awards in the game asindicated by award display 110. In some games, the player may have anaward or awards to start a game. The awards are acquired in previousgames and remain with the player until the player is done playing thegaming device. However, the player starts out this game with zero andwill attempt to obtain awards while picking selections in the game.

[0070] Referring now to FIG. 4B, the player picks a first selection 112from the plurality of selections 102. The first selection reveals anaward with a value of ten. The player receives this award as indicatedby award display 110. Also, the player now has four picks remaining asshown by pick display 108. Although the player received an award, theirgoal is to obtain several awards before the game ends. Thus, the playeris hoping to pick a selection with an accumulated award because theaccumulated award will provide multiple awards to the player.

[0071] In FIG. 4C, the player obtains an accumulated award with thesecond pick of a selection. The accumulated award 114 reveals all of theawards associated with selections 115 related to and in this embodimentadjacent to the selection picked by the player having the accumulatedaward. The accumulated award equals the sum of the awards associatedwith the adjacent selections. The accumulated award is transferred tothe award display 110. As a result, the player's total award for thegame increases substantially. Prior to picking the accumulated award114, the player had a total award of ten. After obtaining theaccumulated award, the player has a total award of eighty-five. Theaccumulated award provides a much larger award to a player and increasesthe player's excitement and interest in the game. The player now hasthree picks remaining as shown in pick display 108 and the player willcontinue to pick selections to obtain more awards.

[0072] Referring to FIG. 4D, the player makes their third pick in thegame. Again, the player picks a selection 102 that reveals anaccumulated award 116. Now, the player obtains the awards associatedwith the selections adjacent to the selection having the accumulatedaward 116. One of the selections adjacent to the selection having theaccumulated award also has an associated accumulated award 118. In thiscase, the player receives the award values of the selections adjacent tothe selections with both accumulated awards 1 16 and 1 18, respectively.The total award value of the accumulated award associated with selection116 is fifty-five, which includes the award value, if any, of theaccumulated award 118. After adding this total to the total award forthe game, the player has a total award value of one hundred forty asshown in award display 110. The player has two picks remaining in thegame as indicated by the pick display 108.

[0073] In the above embodiment, an accumulated award 116 revealedanother accumulated award 118. Each award associated with the selectionsadjacent to the accumulated awards are provided to the player.Overlapping awards 119 are counted one time. Therefore, the total awardfor picking the selection having the accumulated award 116 is fifty-five(where the accumulated awards do not have associated awards). In analternative embodiment, the overlapping awards 119 are counted twice.The player receives an award value of fifteen for the overlapping awards119 after picking the accumulated award 116. Then the player receivesanother award of fifteen for the same overlapping awards 119 associatedwith the second accumulated award 118. Therefore in the alternativeembodiment, the player receives a total award of seventy for picking theaccumulated award 116. It should also be appreciated that eachaccumulated award could include an award associated with the selectionof the accumulated award symbol.

[0074] A player receives a much larger award for each accumulated award.Therefore, a game that reveals multiple accumulated awards after onlyone pick by a player creates enhanced levels of player excitement. Itshould be appreciated that the number of accumulated awards is onlylimited by the number of selections. Each accumulated award may revealzero, one or more accumulated awards in addition to awards of relatedselections.

[0075] In FIG. 4E, the player picks another selection 120 from theplurality of selections 102. The selection 120 reveals an award of five.Because the player did not obtain an accumulated award, the playerreceives an award of five for this pick. The award value of five isadded to the player's total award for the game to give the player a newtotal award of one hundred forty-five as shown in award display 110. Theplayer has one pick remaining in the game as indicated by pick display108.

[0076] Referring now to FIG. 4F, the player makes their final pick inthe game and picks selection 122, which reveals an accumulated award.The accumulated award is located in a corner of the matrix. Thus, theplayer receives the awards associated with the selections related to oradjacent to the selection having the accumulated award. The total valueof the three adjacent selections in the matrix is twenty-five. Thisaward is added to the player's total award which is one hundred seventyas shown in award display 110. The player is out of picks as indicatedby pick display 108 and therefore the game ends.

[0077] Referring to FIG. 5, another embodiment of the present inventionis illustrated where the accumulated award includes the awardsassociated with selections that are in the same row as the pickedselection having the accumulated award. This figure shows how animplementor could change the awards revealed by an accumulated award.Here, the player picks the selection having the accumulated award 124,which in turn reveals the adjacent selections in row 125. Theaccumulated award equals twenty as shown in award display 110.

[0078] In FIG. 6, yet another embodiment of the present invention isillustrated where the player picks a selection having an accumulatedaward 126 from the plurality of selections 102. The accumulated awardreveals the awards 127 associated with the selections that are directlyabove, below, left and right of it. The selections diagonal from theaccumulated award location are not revealed. Thus, the implementor mayalter the number and location of selections that are related to a pickedselection having an accumulated award. The player receives a total awardof forty for obtaining the accumulated award in this example as shown byaward display 110.

[0079] In one embodiment of the present invention, a player receives anextra award for completing a row, column or other predefined area in theplurality of selections 102. For example, if a player picks a number ofselections 102 that complete a row in the selection matrix, the playerreceives an extra award in addition to the total awards associated withthe revealed selections.

[0080] In another embodiment, the plurality of selections 102 includeone or more terminators. In this embodiment, the gaming device enables aplayer to pick selections and obtain awards until the player picks aterminator. If the player picks a terminator, the game ends.

[0081] Now referring to FIG. 7, another embodiment of the presentinvention is shown where the plurality of selections are arranged in apattern or design including a plurality of selection sets 103 a to 103m. The pattern or design may be any pattern or design desired by animplementor and may include any number of selection sets 103. Eachselection set 103 includes at least one and preferably a plurality ofselections 102. The object of this embodiment is to proceed from thefirst selection set 103 a to the last selection set 103 m using alimited number of picks as shown in pick display 108. The selectionsinclude awards 130 and accumulated awards 138. The awards include freepicks, spins or credits.

[0082] One embodiment includes terminators 132, promoters 134 andtransformers 136 associated with the selections. As described inrelation to the above embodiment, when a player picks a selection, theplayer receives an award associated with that selection. If the playerpicks a selection having an accumulated award 138, the player receivesthe awards associated with the selections 102 in the selection set ofthe picked selection. Thus, the selections in a selection set arerelated for determining the accumulated award. In one embodiment, thegame reveals each selection in the respective selection set thatincludes the accumulated award selection. In another embodiment, eachselection set has a plurality of selections and an accumulated awardreveals the awards associated with the selections directly adjacent (orotherwise related) to the associated award selection.

[0083] If a terminator 132 is associated with a selection, the game endswhen the terminator selection is picked by the player. However, if aplayer picks a transformer 136 before picking a terminator, thetransformer changes the terminator into an accumulated award. If thisoccurs, the player receives the awards associated with the selections102 in the selection set. In other words, the terminator becomes anaccumulated award after it is changed by a transformer 136. In oneembodiment, each transformer 136 changes one terminator 132. However, itis contemplated that a single transformer may change one or moreterminators in a game.

[0084] The promoter 134 causes a player to skip a selection set and movecloser to the end 103 m. After a player skips a selection set, theyreceive another opportunity to pick a selection 102 in the nextselection set. In one embodiment, the player does not lose a pick byobtaining the promoter. In one embodiment, the promoter skips only oneset 103. However, it should be appreciated that a promoter may cause aplayer to skip one or more sets as desired by the implementor.

[0085] A player's goal is to reach the final selection set, which inthis example is selection set 103 m, while accumulating as many awardsas possible before running out of picks. In one embodiment, the playerreceives a number of picks that enable that player to possibly reach thefinal selection set 103 m if the player picks the correct selections toachieve this result. In another embodiment, the picks may be designatedarbitrarily or randomly, such that a player may need one or morepromoters to reach the final selection set because the player does nothave enough picks at the beginning of the game to successfully pick aselection in each selection set to reach the final selection set.

[0086] In FIG. 7, the awards 130, terminators 132, promoters 134,transformers 136 and accumulated awards 138 are designated by certaincharacters, symbols or numbers. These designations are for illustrationonly and the game implementor may designate any suitable characters,symbols, numbers, pictures or sounds. Also, the awards 130, terminators132, promoters 134, transformers 136 and accumulated awards 138 arepreferably associated with probabilities such that any one of theselections has a greater probability of being assigned to a selection102 than another selection. Furthermore, a player preferably receives anadditional award if the player reaches the final selection set 103 m. Itis contemplated that the player may only receive the total of the awardsfor the player's selections in each set or a bonus award for making itto the final selection set. The bonus award may be extra spins, picks,games, multipliers or whatever award is desired by the game implementor.

[0087] Now referring to FIGS. 8A through 8E, an example is shown where aplayer picks selections from a plurality of selection sets 103 a to 103m that are displayed to the player. The selection sets are arranged intoa p-shaped pattern where each selection set includes a plurality ofselections. The gaming device provides the player with a limited numberof picks as shown in pick display 108. The player must use those picksto pick a selection 102 in each selection set to try to get to the finalselection set 103 m. After each pick, the player may receive an awardassociated with the picked selection, which is added to their totalaward for the game. As indicated above, the player may receive otherdesignations such as a terminator, which ends the game. Thus, the playeris provided with several alternatives and objectives in this embodiment,which increases the level of excitement and enjoyment of the game.

[0088] Specifically referring to FIG. 8A, the gaming device provides theplayer with five picks to begin the game. The pattern includes thirteenselections sets, 103 a to 103 m, having four selections 102 in each set.Therefore, since the player only has five picks and there are thirteenselection sets in the game, the player must obtain promoters to reachthe final selection set 103 m in this game. The player's first pick isselection 142 in the first selection set 103 a. The picked selectionreveals an award of five, which is transferred to the award display 110.The player has four picks remaining to reach the final selection set 103m as shown in pick display 108.

[0089] The player picks the second selection 144 in the second selectionset 103 b as illustrated in FIG. 8B. This selection reveals anaccumulated award. In this example, the accumulated award equals therevealed awards associated with the selections in the same selection set103 b as the accumulated award. The player receives the accumulatedaward of thirty for this pick. The award is transferred to the awarddisplay 110 to give the player a total award of thirty-five for thegame. Now with only three picks remaining as shown in pick display 108,the player must attempt to pick several promoters to reach the finalselection set 103 m.

[0090] Referring now to FIG. 8C, the player makes their third pick inthe game. The player picks selection 146 in the third selection set 103c. A transformer, designated by a star, is associated with thisselection. The transformer does not have an award associated with it;however, it should be appreciated that a transformer may include anytype of award as desired by the game implementor.

[0091] The transformer changes a terminator into an accumulated award.The transformer also acts like a free pick in the game by allowing theplayer to continue to pick selections even though the player picked aterminator. Normally, the terminator ends the game but with atransformer, the terminator reveals selections the same as anaccumulated award. Until the player needs the transformer, it will beshown on display 30, 32 or on a separate display (not shown) to indicatethat the player has a transformer or transformers to use in the game ifthe player should pick a terminator selection.

[0092] In one embodiment, the number of transformers obtained by aplayer is indicated on one of the display devices by displaying the samenumber of transformer symbols on the display device. For example, if theplayer selects two transformer symbols in a game, the display devicewill display two transformer symbols. If the player uses one of thetransformers during the game, the display will display one transformersymbol to indicate to the player that the player only has onetransformer remaining in the game. In another embodiment, the number oftransformers obtained by the player is indicated by a transformerdisplay that is similar to the pick display 108. In this embodiment, ifthe player obtains two transformers during the game, the transformerdisplay will display the number two in the transformer display.

[0093] If the player obtains more than one transformer, each transformeris displayed to the player until the transformer is used in the game.The player's award total remains unchanged and the player now has twopicks remaining in the game as shown in pick display 108.

[0094] Referring to FIGS. 8D and 8E, the player picks selection 148 inthe fourth selection set 103 d. This selection reveals a terminator,which is represented by an “X” in this example. The transformer changesor transforms the terminator into an accumulated award as shown in FIG.8E. Therefore, the other selections in selection set 103 d are revealedto the player. The player receives an accumulated award of thirty, whichis added to award display 110 to give a new total award of sixty-five.The player has one pick left in the game as indicated by pick display108.

[0095] In FIG. 8F, the player uses the final selection in the game. Thepicked selection 150 reveals a promoter which is designated by thephrase “SKIP.” The promoter acts like a free pick such that the promoterenables the player to skip the selection set 103 e that includes thepromoter. Now the player has an opportunity to pick a selection in thenext selection set 103 f. The player picks selection 152 that reveals anaward of ten. The player has no more picks. The player ends the gamewith a total award of seventy-five as indicated by award display 110.

[0096] It should be appreciated that the processor of the gaming devicepreferably randomly assigns the awards, accumulated awards, terminators,transformers and promoters to the selections each time the game isplayed. The processor could make these assignments from tables, based onweighted probabilities, or distributions, or in any other suitablemanner.

[0097] In another embodiment of the present invention, the value of theawards associated with the selections in the selection sets increase asa player progresses to each subsequent set in the selection set pattern.For example, the maximum award in the first selection set is one. Then,the maximum award in the second selection set is five. As the playeradvances to a new selection set, the award associated with each newselection set increases by a predetermined amount. The player advancesthrough the pattern until the player reaches the last selection set inthe pattern, where the maximum award is one hundred. It should beappreciated that the award may increase by a predetermined amount or bya random amount. In this embodiment, a player's excitement andentertainment level increases as the player advances through the patternof selection sets. It should also be appreciated that the ranges ofawards could vary and the average values in each set could vary.

[0098] In one alternative embodiment, the chance, percentage orprobability of termination may vary. In one such embodiment, the chance,percentage or probability of termination increases as the playeradvances through each set or group of selections. In another suchembodiment, the chance, percentage or probability of termination israndomly determined or selected from a pool of such percentages for eachset or group of selections.

[0099] An alternative embodiment of the bonus game of the presentinvention is generally illustrated in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows a displaydevice 30 or 32, shown in FIGS. 1A or 1B, as it would appear to a playerat the beginning of a game. In this embodiment, an indicator display 200includes several indicators 202. The indicators 202 are in the form ofpuzzle pieces, which collectively form a puzzle. It should beappreciated that the indicators may be any suitable interconnectingshapes, symbols or images. In one embodiment, an award such as a valueis associated with each puzzle piece 202. In one embodiment, the awardsassociated with the puzzle pieces are masked or hidden at the start ofthe game. It should be appreciated that the awards may be values,credits, free spins, free games, multipliers, game elements or any othersuitable award or outcome desired by the game implementor.

[0100] In one embodiment, the puzzle pieces 202 which form the puzzleare all different. In another embodiment, the puzzle pieces include apredefined or predetermined relationship. In one aspect of thisembodiment, at least two of the puzzle pieces in the puzzle are thesame. In another aspect of this embodiment, a plurality of the puzzlepieces in the puzzle are the same. It should be appreciated that atleast two of the puzzle pieces, a plurality of the puzzle pieces or allof the puzzle pieces may be different.

[0101] The game also includes a selection display 204. In oneembodiment, the selection display includes a plurality of selections206, each of which are associated with an indicator or puzzle piece 202.For example, selection 208 is associated with puzzle piece 210.Preferably, each selection is associated with one or more puzzle pieces202. However, it should be appreciated that a selection may beassociated with values, spins, credits or multipliers as well as puzzlepieces 202. As described above, the puzzle pieces such as the puzzlepiece associated with selection 208 are initially masked or hidden fromthe player. Each puzzle piece 202 is revealed after a player picks thecorresponding selection 206 including the puzzle piece from theselection display 204.

[0102] The gaming device also includes an instruction display 213 whichprovides instructions and/or messages to the player in a game. Theinstruction display 213 may display any suitable instructions ormessages to the player. Additionally, the gaming device includes anaward display 212 that indicates the value of the awards that the playerhas accumulated in a game.

[0103] At the start of a game, the processor 38 randomly generates apuzzle 200 including several interconnected or matingly connected puzzlepieces 202. A player then picks one selection 206 from the selectiondisplay 204. Once a player picks a selection 206, the picked selectionreveals a puzzle piece that matches a puzzle piece 202 on indicatordisplay 200. The player receives the award, if any, associated with thepicked puzzle piece 202. As described above, the award may be credits,free spins, free games, values, multipliers, game elements or any othersuitable award or outcome. In addition, the awards may be weighted suchthat a player is more likely to receive one award than another award.

[0104] The object of the game is to complete a designated section of thepuzzle 200 while accumulating awards during the game. The completeddesignated section may be a row, column or any other suitable section ofthe puzzle designated by the game implementor, and may vary with eachgame. In one embodiment, the player continues to pick selections 206until they complete a designated section of puzzle pieces 202, such as arow or column of puzzle pieces. In one embodiment, the gaming deviceprovides the awards associated with the puzzle pieces which form thecompleted row or column and any indicated puzzle pieces which aredirectly or matingly connected to any of the puzzle pieces of thecompleted row or column.

[0105] Referring to FIGS. 10 through 15, the present invention isillustrated by showing an example of several picks of the selections 204by a player starting from the initial pick to the final pick in a game.In FIG. 10, the indicator display 200 and selection display 204 areinitially shown to a player on display devices 30 or 32. The processor38 randomly displays a puzzle 200 including several matinglyinterconnected puzzle pieces to the player. The gaming device enablesthe player to pick selections 206 until the player completes at leastone of several different designated sections of the puzzle. In thisembodiment, the designated sections of the puzzle include any matinglyconnected row or column of the puzzle pieces. Therefore, if a playerpicks selections which reveal puzzle pieces that complete a matinglyconnected row or column of the puzzle pieces in the puzzle, the gameends and the gaming device provides the player with the awardsassociated with the puzzle pieces that form the row or column and theawards associated with the puzzle pieces that are matingly connected tothe completed row or column.

[0106] In this example, the instruction display 213 instructs the playerto “Pick One of the Selections” in the section display 204. The playerpicks selection 214 which reveals puzzle piece 216. Puzzle piece 216 hasa value of ten. The award or awards associated with the revealed puzzlepieces are transferred to the player when the player obtains or revealsa designated section of puzzle pieces in the puzzle. Because the playerhas not completed a designated section of puzzle pieces in the game, thetotal award indicated by the total award display 212 remains at zero. Inthis example, the picked selection 214 is highlighted and remainsvisible to the player during the game. Similarly, the correspondingpuzzle piece 216 is highlighted so that the player can see the sectionor sections that they are trying to complete. Preferably, the pickedpuzzle pieces and values remain visible to the player. However it shouldbe appreciated that only the puzzle pieces may be viewable by theplayer, and not the associated values of the puzzle pieces. The playernow has one piece of the puzzle and must continue picking selectionsuntil the player completes a designated section (i.e., a row or column)of the puzzle.

[0107] In FIG. 11, the instruction display 213 instructs the player to“Pick Another Selection.” The player picks a second selection 218, whichreveals puzzle piece 220 in the puzzle or indicator display 100. Thispuzzle piece has an award value of five. The player now has two piecesof the puzzle and must continue to pick selections 106 until the playercompletes a designated section of the puzzle 100.

[0108] Referring to FIG. 12, the instruction display 213 instructs theplayer to “Pick Another Selection.” The player picks a third selection222 and reveals puzzle piece 224. Puzzle piece 224 has an award value often and is the first piece that matingly connects to another piece inthe puzzle. In fact, puzzle piece 224 connects to both puzzle pieces 216and 220. At this point in the game, the player is starting to form asection of the puzzle. Thus, the player's excitement and enjoyment ofthe game increases because the player only needs a few more of thepuzzle pieces to complete a designated section in the game.

[0109] Referring to FIG. 13, the instruction display 213 instructs theplayer to “Pick Another Selection” from the selection display 204. Theplayer picks selection 226 which reveals puzzle piece 228. This puzzlepiece connects to puzzle piece 224 and has an award value of twenty. Theplayer only needs to obtain one more puzzle piece to complete a row andend the bonus game.

[0110] Referring to FIG. 14, the instruction display 113 instructs theplayer to “Pick Another Selection” from the selection display 204. Theplayer picks selection 230 which reveals one of the corner puzzle pieces232. Although the player ultimately desires to complete a designatedsection of the puzzle the player potentially will obtain a larger awardby not picking the last puzzle piece in the row because in this examplethe player receives the awards associated with the puzzle pieces in thedesignated section and any puzzle pieces which are matingly connected tothe designated section. Therefore, if the player subsequently picks theselection which completes the row of puzzle pieces including puzzlepiece 216, the player receives the award of twenty-five, the awardsassociated with the other puzzle pieces in the designated row and theawards associated with the puzzle pieces matingly connected to the row.As a result, the player still has an opportunity to increase their totalaward in the game.

[0111] Referring to FIG. 15, the player picks selection 234, which isthe last puzzle piece 236 in the row (i.e., the designated section). Inthis embodiment, the bonus game ends when the player completes adesignated section such as a row or column or some other defined sectionin the puzzle 200. Thus, the gaming device provides the player with atotal award of seventy-five which includes the award for puzzle piece236, which is five, and the sum of the awards associated with the otherpuzzle pieces in the row, which is forty (i.e., twenty plus ten plusten) and the sum of the awards associated with the puzzle piecesmatingly connected to the row, which is thirty (i.e., five plustwenty-five). The total award of seventy-five is added to any awardsthat the player received in a previous game or games and indicated inthe total award display 212.

[0112] As illustrated by this example, the player receives the totalaward for the completed designated section or row including puzzlepieces 236, 216, 224 and 228, and any puzzle pieces matingly connectedto that row, which are puzzle pieces 220 and 232. However, it should beappreciated that a player may receive the total award for the completeddesignated section only, and not the awards from the puzzle pieces whichare matingly connected to the completed designated section. For example,the player would have received a total award of forty-five instead ofseventy-five without including the awards from the matingly connectedpuzzle pieces which are not part of the completed row. Therefore, a gameimplementor may vary the award possibilities as desired.

[0113] In another alternative embodiment, each of the pieces of thepuzzle which are the puzzle 200 include awards which are visible orviewable by the player. The player can then root for certain puzzlepieces to be revealed when the player picks the selections 206 becausethose pieces are associated with a desirable award or awards such as alarge award. It should be appreciated that a single puzzle piece, aplurality of puzzle pieces or all of the puzzle pieces may include avisible or viewable award in a game.

[0114] Referring now to FIG. 16, another embodiment of the presentinvention is illustrated where the indicator display or puzzle 200includes a plurality of identical puzzle pieces. In this embodiment, theplayer picks the selection such as selection 237 from the selectiondisplay 204. A puzzle piece associated with selection 237 occurs aplurality of times in the puzzle 200. Specifically, puzzle pieces 238,240 and 242 are identical to the puzzle piece associated with selection237. Therefore, selection 237 reveals a plurality of identical puzzlepieces in the puzzle 200. As a result, the players excitement andenjoyment of the game increases because the player obtains severalpuzzle pieces with the pick of one selection from the selection display204. It should be appreciated that one puzzle piece or a plurality ofpuzzle pieces may be repeated or be identical in a puzzle in a game.Additionally, it should be appreciated that any suitable number ofidentical puzzle pieces may be included in the puzzle 200.

[0115] In an alternative embodiment, one or more of the selections 206in the selection display 204 include a plurality of puzzle pieces. Thepuzzle pieces may be the same or identical puzzle pieces or differentpuzzle pieces. In this embodiment, the player obtains a plurality ofpuzzle pieces in the puzzle 200 by picking a single selection 206 in theselection display 204. Similar to the embodiment described above, theplayers excitement and enjoyment of the game increases because theplayer obtains a plurality of puzzle pieces in the puzzle from a singlepick of the plurality of selections in the selection display 204.

[0116] Referring now to FIGS. 17A to 17C, an example of one embodimentof the present invention is illustrated where a player only needs toreveal and obtain one more puzzle piece in the puzzle 200 to complete adesignated section of the puzzle and receive a plurality of awards inthe game. Specifically, in this embodiment, the gaming device providesthe awards associated with any puzzle pieces obtained by the player inthe puzzle that form a designated section such as a row or column in thepuzzle and also any puzzle pieces which are matingly connected to thedesignated section completed by the player. Therefore, a player wants toobtain as many puzzle pieces as possible before completing a designatedsection such as a row or column in the game to obtain the largestpossible number of awards.

[0117] Referring to FIG. 17A, the player has already picked severalselections 106 which revealed several puzzle pieces in the puzzle 200.Specifically, the player only needs to obtain one more puzzle piece suchas puzzle piece 300, 301, 302, 303, 304, 305 or 307 to complete adesignated section in the puzzle. If the player picks a selection whichreveals puzzle pieces 300, 301 or 302, the player obtains the awardsassociated with all of the puzzle pieces that are matingly connected tothe designated section or column including those puzzle pieces and anypuzzle pieces matingly connected to that completed row. Similarly, ifthe player picks a selection which reveals either puzzle piece 303, 304or 305, the player obtains the awards associated with the puzzle piecesthat form the designated section or row and all of the puzzle piecesmatingly connected to that designated section or row. Therefore, theplayer will obtain a larger award if the player picks a selectionincluding puzzle pieces 300, 301 or 302 because the player will obtainmore awards. Conversely, the player will only obtain the awardsassociated with the puzzle pieces primarily in the upper portion of thepuzzle if the player obtains puzzle pieces 303, 304 or 305 and not thepuzzle pieces on the lower or bottom row of the puzzle because none ofthe lower puzzle pieces are matingly connected to that completedsection. Therefore, the player wants to obtain either puzzle piece 300,301 or 302 in the puzzle. The players excitement and enjoyment in thegame increases when one puzzle piece determines whether the playerobtains a large award in a game.

[0118]FIG. 17B illustrates an example where the player picks a selection306 a which reveals a puzzle piece that is included in one of thedesignated sections which includes a smaller number of puzzle pieces.Specifically, the player picks selection 306 a which reveals puzzlepiece 307 in the puzzle 200. The gaming device provides the player withthe awards associated with the matingly connected puzzle pieces whichform the designated section or row including puzzle piece 307.Therefore, the gaming device provides the player with an award ofseventy-five which is indicated by the award display 212. The award ofseventy-five includes the awards of ten, twenty-five, fifteen, twentyand five associated with the puzzle pieces which form the completeddesignated section by the player. The player however would receive amuch larger award if the player picked a selection including puzzlepiece 302 because this puzzle piece is interconnected to more pieces inthe puzzle. Therefore, this example illustrates how one piece maydetermine whether the player obtains a relatively large award or arelatively small award in a game.

[0119] Referring to FIG. 17C, another example of the embodiment shown inFIG. 17A is illustrated where the player picks selection 306 b whichreveals puzzle piece 302 and thereby completes a designated section orcolumn in the puzzle 200. The gaming device provides the player with theawards associated with the puzzle pieces that form the designated columnand all of the awards associated with the puzzle pieces that arematingly connected to the completed designated column. As a result, thegaming device provides the awards associated with all of the puzzlepieces that have been obtained by the player in the game which is thelargest possible award in this game. The total award of two hundredfifty as indicated by the award display 212 is much larger than thetotal award of seventy-five obtained by the player in the example inFIG. 17B. Therefore, one puzzle piece may determine whether the playerobtains a very large award or a smaller award in the game. This add tothe players excitement and enjoyment of the game.

[0120] Referring to FIG. 18, another embodiment of the present inventionis illustrated where the gaming device provides a plurality of rowawards 400 associated with the rows of matingly connected puzzle piecesand a plurality of column awards 402 associated with the matinglyconnected puzzle pieces which form the columns in the puzzle 200 in agame. In this embodiment, the gaming device provides the player with theawards associated with all the matingly interconnected puzzle pieceswhich form the completed designated row or column in a game and also therow award or column award associated with the completed designatedsection. For example in FIG. 18., a player picks selection 404 whichreveals puzzle piece 406 in the puzzle 200. Puzzle piece 406 completes arow of puzzle pieces in the game. Thus, the gaming device provides theplayer with the sum of the awards associated with the puzzle pieces inthe row, which is sixty, and the puzzle piece matingly connected to therow, which is five. The total award associated with the puzzle pieces issixty-five. The gaming device also provides the row award of one hundredto the player for completing the row associated with this row award. Thetotal award obtained by the player is therefore one hundred sixty-fiveas indicated by the total award display 212. The above embodimentprovides the player with an additional award in the game which increasesthe players excitement and enjoyment of the game. In one embodiment, therow award or column award is added to the accumulated award associatedwith the puzzle pieces that form the completed designated section in agame. In another embodiment, the row award or column award is used as amultiplier to modify or multiple the accumulated awards associated withthe puzzle pieces that form the completed designated column or row inthe game. It should be appreciated that the row or column awards maymodify the accumulated award in any suitable manner.

[0121] While the present invention is described in connection with whatis presently considered to be the most practical and preferredembodiments, it should be appreciated that the invention is not limitedto the disclosed embodiments, and is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the claims. Modifications and variations in the presentinvention may be made without departing from the novel aspects of theinvention as defined in the claims, and this application is limited onlyby the scope of the claims.

The invention is claimed as follows:
 1. A gaming device comprising: adisplay device; a plurality of matingly interconnected puzzle piecesadapted to be displayed by said display device; a plurality ofselections, each of said selections associated with one of said puzzlepieces, wherein a player picks said selections until the player obtainsa designated combination of said puzzle pieces; and an outcome providedto the player based on the designated combination obtained by the playerand the selected puzzle pieces matingly connected to at least one of thepuzzle pieces in the designated combination of puzzle pieces.
 2. Thegaming device of claim 1, wherein the puzzle pieces have a predefinedrelationship.
 3. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes aplurality of awards, at least one of said awards associated with each ofthe puzzle pieces.
 4. The gaming device of claim 3, wherein said awardsinclude values, credits, free spins, free games or multipliers.
 5. Thegaming device of claim 3, wherein the outcome includes the sum of theawards associated with the puzzle pieces of the designated combinationobtained by the player.
 6. The gaming device of claim 3, wherein theoutcome includes the sum of the awards associated with the puzzle piecesof the designated combination obtained by the player and any awardsassociated with puzzle pieces matingly connected to the puzzle pieces ofsaid designated combination.
 7. The gaming device of claim 3, whichincludes a bonus award provided to the player for obtaining thedesignated combination of said puzzle pieces.
 8. The gaming device ofclaim 1, wherein the designated combination of puzzle pieces includes atleast one of: a row of matingly connected puzzle pieces, a column ofmatingly connected puzzle pieces and a designated section of matinglyconnected puzzle pieces.
 9. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein atleast two of the puzzle pieces are the same.
 10. The gaming device ofclaim 1, wherein all of the puzzle pieces are different.
 11. The gamingdevice of claim 1, wherein at least one of the selections includes aplurality of puzzle pieces.
 12. The gaming device of claim 1, whereinthe display device includes a video monitor.
 13. The gaming device ofclaim 12, wherein the video monitor includes a touch screen.
 14. Agaming device comprising: a display device; a plurality of matinglyinterconnected puzzle pieces displayed by said display device, whereinthe puzzle pieces form at least one row and at least one column; a rowaward associated with each of the rows of the matingly interconnectedpuzzle pieces; a column award associated with each of the columns of thematingly interconnected puzzle pieces; a plurality of selections, eachof said selections including one of said puzzle pieces, wherein a playerpicks said selections until the player obtains a designated combinationof said puzzle pieces; and an outcome provided to the player based onthe designated combination obtained by the player, wherein the outcomeincludes any row awards or column awards associated with the designatedcombination obtained by the player and the selected puzzle piecesmatingly connected to at least one of the puzzle pieces in thedesignated combination of puzzle pieces.
 15. The gaming device of claim14, wherein the puzzle pieces have a predefined relationship.
 16. Thegaming device of claim 14, which includes a plurality of awards, atleast one of said awards associated with each of the puzzle pieces. 17.The gaming device of claim 16, wherein the outcome includes the sum ofthe awards associated with the puzzle pieces of the designatedcombination obtained by the player.
 18. The gaming device of claim 16,wherein the outcome includes the sum of the awards associated with thepuzzle pieces of the designated combination obtained by the player andany awards associated with puzzle pieces matingly connected to thepuzzle pieces of said designated combination.
 19. The gaming device ofclaim 16, which includes a bonus award provided to the player forobtaining the designated combination of said puzzle pieces.
 20. Thegaming device of claim 14, wherein the designated combination of puzzlepieces includes at least one of: a row of matingly connected puzzlepieces, a column of matingly connected puzzle pieces and a designatedsection of matingly connected puzzle pieces.
 21. The gaming device ofclaim 14, wherein at least two of the puzzle pieces are the same. 22.The gaming device of claim 14, wherein all of the puzzle pieces aredifferent.
 23. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein at least one ofthe selections includes a plurality of puzzle pieces.
 24. The gamingdevice of claim 14, wherein the outcome includes the sum of the awardsassociated with the designated combination and any row awards or columnawards.
 25. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the outcome includesthe awards associated with the designated combination multiplied by anyrow awards or column awards.
 26. A method for operating a gaming devicehaving a game operable upon a wager, said method comprising the stepsof: (a) displaying a plurality of matingly connected puzzle pieces to aplayer on a display device in said game; (b) enabling a player to pickone selection from a plurality of selections associated with said puzzlepieces; (c) repeating steps (a) to (c) until a designated combination ofthe puzzle pieces is obtained by the player; and (d) providing anoutcome to the player based on the designated combination of puzzlepieces obtained by the player and any selected puzzle pieces matinglyconnected to at least one of the puzzle pieces in the designatedcombination of puzzle pieces.
 27. The method of claim 26, wherein thestep of providing an outcome to the player includes providing an outcomeincluding the sum of at least one award associated with each of thepuzzle pieces in the designated combination obtained by the player. 28.The method of claim 26, wherein the step of providing an outcome to theplayer includes providing an outcome including the sum of at least oneaward associated with each of the puzzle pieces in the designatedcombination obtained by the player and any puzzle pieces matinglyconnected to said designated combination.
 29. The method of claim 26,which includes the step of providing a bonus award to the player forobtaining the designated combination of the puzzle pieces.
 30. Themethod of claim 26, wherein the steps (a) to (d) are provided to aplayer through a data network.
 31. The method of claim 30, wherein thedata network is an internet.
 32. The method of claim 26, wherein thesteps (a) to (d) are stored on a storage device.
 33. A method foroperating a gaming device having a game operable upon a wager, saidmethod comprising the steps of: (a) displaying a plurality of matinglyinterconnected puzzle pieces, at least one row award associated witheach of the rows formed by the puzzle pieces and at least one columnaward associated with each of the columns formed by the puzzle pieces toa player on a display device in said game; (b) enabling a player to pickone selection from a plurality of selections including said puzzlepieces; (c) repeating steps (a) to (b) until a designated combination ofthe puzzle pieces is obtained by the player; and (d) providing anoutcome to the player based on the designated combination, any selectedpuzzle pieces matingly connected to at least one of the puzzle pieces inthe designated combination of puzzle pieces, any row awards and anycolumn awards obtained by the player.
 34. The method of claim 33,wherein the step of providing an outcome to the player includesproviding an outcome including the sum of at least one award associatedwith each of the puzzle pieces in the designated combination obtained bythe player.
 35. The method of claim 34, which includes the step ofmodifying the sum using any row awards or column awards obtained by theplayer.
 36. The method of claim 35, wherein the step of modifying thesum includes adding values associated with any row awards and columnawards obtained by the player to the sum.
 37. The method of claim 35,wherein the step of modifying the outcome includes multiplying the sumby multipliers associated with any row awards and column awards obtainedby the player.
 38. The method of claim 33, wherein the step of providingan outcome to the player includes providing an outcome including the sumof at least one award associated with each of the puzzle pieces in thedesignated combination obtained by the player and any puzzle piecesmatingly connected to said designated combination.
 39. The method ofclaim 33, which includes the step of providing a bonus award to theplayer for obtaining the designated combination of the puzzle pieces.40. The method of claim 33, wherein the steps (a) to (d) are provided toa player through a data network.
 41. The method of claim 40, wherein thedata network is an internet.
 42. The method of claim 33, wherein thesteps (a) to (d) are stored on a storage device.